Where Loyalties Lie
by Chibi Tsuki
Summary: After leaving Konoha for ten years and working undercover with a new identity as a wanderer, Naruto is recalled back to Konoha by Tsunade with his son. However, his identity is to be kept a secret and his real mission is unspoken of.
1. Let me in, Konoha

**Where Loyalties Lie **

By Chibi Tsuki

Summary: After leaving Konoha for ten years and working undercover with a new identity as a wanderer, Naruto is recalled back to Konoha by Tsunade, bringing his son for another new beginning as a Konoha shinobi. However, his identity is to be kept a secret and his real mission is unspoken of.

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto… If is good.

A/N: My first Naruto fanfic. Please do review and give suggestions, although I did write this fic to get the story out of my head and actually watch it progress, not just for reviews. I must admit that it's been a long while since I read the details of the plot, characters and organisations, etc. so please correct me if I'm wrong and I apologise beforehand.

* * *

Chapter One

_Let me in, Konoha_

At the end of the path stood the fine gates of Konoha Village, glowing against the flaming leaves of the autumn trees. The cool breeze ushered the two travellers towards the welcoming sight of warm food, warm baths and a safe place to rest. They trod forth, down the road, hardened from frequent use.

"Stay where you are! Do not move!" a voice sounded through the trees in subtle urgency. "Identify yourself!" The speaker cautiously approached, her figure appearing from the thick of the greenery, face hidden in a mask depicting the powerful expression of a tiger.

The taller of the two travellers stepped forth, arms in front, palms facing upwards as a sign of good intention. He spoke in a rich baritone voice, "My name is Kanazaki Tatsuya, and this is Ryuuya. We have travelled from the Cloud Country, seeking a new home in Konoha." Although there seemed to be no malice in his voice, the female ninja held her defensive stance as a precaution and scrutinised the couple. Both were filthy from head to toe, covered in muck, although the smaller person, Ruuya, seemed to be in better condition. Their facial features, smeared with mud stains were impossible to distinguish. However, their toothy grins and striking blue eyes held what appeared to be genuine compassion. Judging from the unusual shade of blue eyes, the pair had to be blood related, most likely brothers or perhaps cousins for the younger had the height of a eight or nine year old and the elder with his happy-go-lucky attitude could not pass for a man in his mid-twenties. The kunoichi however admitted that his lean yet obviously toned physique would support her deduction that he was over twenty.

Her eagle-sharp eyes bore at them from the slits. "Any respectable citizen seeking a new home in any village would look tidy and cleaner than the pair of you. How do I know you two aren't disguising yourselves under that filth and trying to sneak into Konoha?" Her crisp voice held an obvious tone of distrust, even if she herself didn't feel that way. Every village had to take precautions nowadays. The recent masses of banding missing-nins were a threat. Heck, not all of them were missing-nins. Some shinobi were rumoured to have been trained by a mysterious organisation, pretending to be missing-nins to create confusion.

"Ah, that we can explain!" the younger boy hastily blurted. "For the past day, we've been chased by bandits. Everything we had has already been stolen except what we have on us." Desperation to convey his story caused him to ramble onto details, "We had just crossed the bridge away from one of the small towns and had been walking for an hour or so when ten big men came up to us, holding swords and knives. Since they were so scary and we knew we had no chance, we threw our bags as far away into the bushes as we could and ran! They started to chase after us pretty soon and we ran and we ran and we ran, but they kept coming after us. I was tired and I fell many times." At this point, he started indicating at his scrapped knees. "Tatsuya, picked me up and continued running and then he tripped and we fell into the marsh. Then I can't remember what happened." Ryuuya looked up to Tatsuya with pleading eyes, as if wanting him to continue the story.

"I fell unconscious too," the man stated, in an embarrassed fashion, his hand scratching his head. "I don't think I was out for long though. I just found it hard to breathe and woke up. The bandits must've run pass us because I could hear some faint sounds of people storming through the trees up ahead. I carried Ryuuya in this direction as quickly as I could, thinking that it would probably be the safest for us to come straight to the village. So here we are." He sighed, supposedly in relief or perhaps in resignation, waiting for the ninja to pass judgement.

Signalling for her hidden team mates to approach, the kunoichi stared straight at the man's eyes until he returned the stare. He held them. Surprisingly, it was her who broke the contact and looked towards a man fully clad in black, wearing a mask similar to the woman's tight against his face. Addressing him she asked him for his confirmation on the situation which he replied in a whisper, "What they have said is the truth. They had been ganged up by a group of bandits. I recall in the files that they call themselves the Blood Orges, a bandit gang totalling in thirty but of no real threat to us. However, they have been causing havoc to travellers and on occasion have killed a few."

She nodded and murmured, "We will have to report to the Hokage and deal with them later. Did you see the faces of these two?"

"The boy's yes, but I couldn't see the man's properly. His face was swollen on one side like it is now if you look closely," she glanced at him, "probably an allergy from a sting or something of the like." Nodding, she dismissed him and concentrated on the pair, feeling their apprehension.

"I have come to decision that you two will be in surveillance whilst in Konoha. Of course, the final decision as to whether you two may stay in our village entirely depends on our Hokage. You are to see her tomorrow after you've cleaned yourself up." At this point she wrinkled her nose slightly.

"Thank you!" the two chorused in unison, their grimy faces lighting up if that were possible under the muck.

* * *

Escorted into the village, the two stared in awe at the people, the shops, homes, and everything else that was in sight, especially the younger of the two. Unsurprisingly, the two amidst a team of Anbu were also the centre of attention. However, people shied away as they approached, hands waving at the smell and eyes staring in contempt. Nonetheless, the pair's excitement could not be lessened. 

They were brought to the well polished entrance of the public bathhouse. The captain of the squad whom they assumed the woman to be, signalled for them to wait while she entered to speak with the owner of the bathhouse. In the several moments she was gone, they stood admiring the scenery, devouring the sights of their hopefully future home. At her gesture, they stepped into the bathhouse, walking past the slightly perturbed face of the owner and followed one of the employees down the corridor. The squad captain had left them to be, explaining that two of the team members will remain watching them while she had other matters to attend to. Neither Tatsuya nor Ryuuya paid much attention to her as they anticipated the bath to come. After she had departed, their attendant also left the pair to their privacy as he took their filthy clothes for laundering.

An hour later when she next saw the pair, she was slightly startled yet finding herself swallowing her own chuckles. Donning their rather tattered and heavily stained garments, the two were much more presentable than before. Although stained brown, it wasn't noticeable that their clothes were originally not of that colour; the marsh must've swallowed them whole. The natural colour of their tanned skin could be seen and their necks looked as if they had been rubbed raw. Unusual shoulder-length black hair with blond streaks was tied up behind the man's head. It must be a new style in the Cloud Country. Similarly the boy had his glossy black hair tied up in what looked more like a tuft than a pony-tail. He had a long elegant nose that was out of place in his round cheeks of baby fat. Contrary to her previous assumptions, he looked younger than eight.

What had her stifling her laughter was the swollen, obviously reddened and heavily padded face of the boy's companion. Both cheeks were swollen ridiculously, having both doubled in size, causing his brilliant blue eyes to shrink. Slapped on his two cheeks were gauze pads, taped lightly on the edges. His reaction to the allergy must've been serious for having needed bandaging. It was possible that he had an open wound and the bandages would prevent infection. Although having no oxygen for the wound to breathe would take much longer for it to recover.

Briefly she explained that a new set of clothes, several meal coupons and temporary accommodation would be provided for them by the village until a decision had been made about their stay in Konoha. She handed over the coupons for their necessities and a map with directions on how to find their lodging for the night. During that time, the team of ninjas had suddenly vanished and she gave them one last warning; that shinobi would be surveilling them.

"Wait," Tatsuya called after her, "thank you for all you've done. Please at least give us your name."

She controlled her desire to laugh out loud at his distorted voice and simply replied, "I won't be able to give you my name, but if you'd like to know my alias is Tora and they call me Weapon Master." Like the others, Tora too disappeared somewhat suddenly.

"Well… Are you up for some grub Ryuuya?" the older man asked, although it was more of a rhetorical question.

"Sure thing Tatsuya!" the boy shouted as he followed eagerly behind.

* * *

Thank you for reading! 


	2. Meeting the Hokage

**Where Loyalties Lie **

By Chibi Tsuki

Summary: After leaving Konoha for ten years and working undercover with a new identity as a wanderer, Naruto is recalled back to Konoha by Tsunade, bringing his son for another new beginning as a Konoha shinobi. However, his identity is to be kept a secret and his real mission is unspoken of.

Disclaimer: Naruto isn't mine, the characters are simply loaned, or borrowed for the better word since I don't pay rental fees.

A/N: Thanks for your reviews! I appreciate your support. Hopefully I'll stick to the goal of completing this fic as I tend to drop off...

I've used several Japanese terms here and there, mostly common ones. They will be marked with an asterix '' and explained at the end notes.

* * *

Chapter Two

_Meeting the Hokage_

As the sun peered over the horizons, faint shadows were cast behind the two figures sitting in the meadow cross-legged. Their postures were upright, shoulders relaxed, eyes slightly open and hands connected on their laps in the shape of a lotus flower. Inhaling, exhaling, inhaling, exhaling; they breathed in a regular pattern. Any bystander would've admitted that they found the duo emitting a feeling of serenity and peace, however there were none at this time of the day. Shadows grew darker as the sun climbed higher up into the sky and Ryuuya was the first to display some movement. In slow motion, he moved his body and commenced an exercise to relieve his body of its stiffness. When he had finally completed the routine, he glanced at his companion who was still in the state of meditating. As always, he was deep in meditation with a concentrated mind, thinking of nothing and focused on his breath. Such a level of meditation needed determination, relaxation and most importantly discipline.

Ryuuya absorbed the scenery around him; the sweet scent of morning dew, trees that swayed gently in the wind and the birds twittering as they rose to greet each other to a new day. It reminded him of home – or what used to be his home. There were happy and sad times back at that small village but no matter how he yearned to return to it, nothing would be the same. The past can only be a memory, the future is an enigma, but the present is the moment which then becomes the past and unfolds the mysteries of the future. For a moment longer he indulged himself by dwelling on those memories before starting to work on exercising his body at the far end of the meadow.

It was close to another half hour before Tatsuya indicated that he had finished meditating by working through the same exercises Ryuuya had completed. The sun was perched high in the sky and the morning warmth was chasing the morning chill away. Their appointment with the Hokage was to be in a few hours. It was an appointment for the duo to make an impression that they were genuinely interested in becoming citizens of Konoha and that their intentions were for the good of the village. Unbeknownst to all except the Hokage, that impression had already been made the day Tatsuya had decided to become a ninja almost twenty years ago. "Ryuuya," he called, standing tall and waiting as the dark headed boy bounded up next to him. Endearingly, he hooked a long arm around the boy's neck and tousled his silky hair.

"To- Tatsuya!" he complained, child-like. Although the little physical resistance suggested he didn't mind it too much. When they had settled down from the display of affection he said in a voice just short of a whine, "I'm hungry. I want croissant for breakfast and waffles with maple syrup! Loads of it!"

With a chuckle, the elder replied, "They don't have croissants and waffles here." Seeing the raised eyebrows and small pout he added, "But they do have those onigiri that your mum made-"

"Yum, yum yum!" Ryuuya cried and tugged Tatsuya along behind him by the sleeve towards the direction of the market district.

* * *

People were bustling here and there, opening stores and stalls, delivering and receiving stock orders and readying the food for the day. Most of the shops open were eateries so that villagers and ninjas alike could eat breakfast before attending to their own matters in the day. Selecting one of the stalls with steaming foods, Tatsuya and Ryuuya purchased ten steaming rice balls, wrapped in crunchy seaweed and settled themselves down on one of the small benches. Although they ate in silence, the pair was savouring every mouthful of the warm sticky rice that glued to their fingers as they ate. Tatsuya ate with a little more care than usual as the chewing action sent a small jolt of pain to his swollen cheeks. As they were finishing their breakfast a man plonked himself down beside them, sending a tremor across the table. Long spiky, brown hair hung below the collar of his dark green jounin vest and swirls on each of his two round cheeks were visible. Ryuuya couldn't help but start counting the number of onigiri on his plate which totalled to twenty and in addition to that, he had a large bowl of noodles. 

Noticing the curious stare the man chuckled and grinned at the boy. "This keeps me going for three hours at most," he said in a low rumble. "I keep snacks on me as well."

Eyes boggling Ryuuya exclaimed, "Really? Don't you feel sick after?"

Another chuckle was followed by a pat on his stomach. "It all comes down here." Suddenly he lowered his head to Ryuuya's eye level and squinted hard. Ryuuya could only feel the intensity of the eyes locked on him; searching. The man's large hard landed on Ryuuya's head and patted him affectionately. "I see you have a strong and steady stare kid. Good eyes. Reminds me of a friend I had." His laughter softly died as he became caught in a memory on the loose.

"What happened to him?"

"Don't really know myself. One day he was just gone. No word, no note. Nothing." He tilted his head to face the cloudless blue sky as if believing that no matter what, the sky was one thing they still shared. "Didn't really know him very well, but he was a great fellow."

Aroused by curiosity Ryuuya asked, "What was he like?"

"He never gave up, gave a hundred percent in everything. We thought he was a bit of a loudmouth at first, jumped straight into the action without analysing the situation whatsoever. But he never let us down." Opposite the jounin, the man with the streaked hair started coughing and turned away from the table.

"You alright, Tatsuya?" The boy's companion nodded and gestured in a wave for Ryuuya to leave him be. "What was that boy's name?"

The stranger who had just bit into an onigiri gestured for him to wait. Finally, he said, "Uzumaki Naruto-"

"Who should be classified as a missing-nin." The trio looked up at the speaker. It was Tora, the two newcomers' escort to the Hokage's office. She let out a barely audible sigh, "Just hope he isn't involved in any of those organisations."

"Morning, Tora-san," Ryuuya greeted, his words accompanied by a beaming smile. "Are we to meet the Hokage?" The Anbu captain nodded and gestured to them that they were to leave. Looking back at the plump man Ryuuya bid him farewell and raced after the two adults who had left without him.

* * *

Their trip to their destination was in silence. Tora didn't strike up a conversation and Tatsuya didn't feel the need to. Having travelled a hard and arduous journey, Tatsuya was tired and weary. The offer of a permanent home without having to take precautions daily was a relief. Besides, there was nothing particular to talk about other than pleasantries. Under the shining wooden arch they went and into a grand building. As grand as it was, it was still very comforting and was enveloping him into a warm, welcome embrace. Clearing numerous flights of stairs, they finally reached the top floor which presented them with the most excellent views of the village. 

"Please wait here while I inform the Hokage," Tora said in little more than a murmur. She knocked at the polished pine doors to the Hokage's room and entered. It was barely even a moment when she reappeared and gestured for them to enter, which they did with little hesitation. Sitting amongst a few piles of paper work was a woman with long blond hair. She was engrossed in what was supposedly a letter, written in fine quill ink, her head tilted downwards. "Tsunade-sama, this is Kanazaki Tatsuya and Ryuuya. As I mentioned yesterday, they seek citizenship in Konoha."

Glancing up from her work the look of intense concentration turned into one of questioning and then amusement. "Ah, yes you did mention that," her voice was lacking the suggested moment of having forgotten the matter, but rather she was confident and her eyes staring straight into that of the smaller boy's. "You may be excused. I shall interview them myself."

"But Tsunade-sama, I believe it is better…" Upon seeing the Hokage's authoritarian expression, Tora nodded and disappeared with a cloud of smoke. Had been other Anbu members in the room, they too would have left without a question.

Stepping up from her seat she walked over to the pair, her full breasts bouncing slightly at her movement. Ignoring the man to the right she suddenly pulled the boy's cheeks with both hands, stretching them as far as she could with a piercing gaze and a lop-sided grin. "You can't fool me brat, I know it's you so release the henge," she said in a venom-dripping tone. On the other hand, Ryuuya was wailing from the pain and grabbing at the Hokage's wrists instinctively, pulling at them for release. Watching the commotion stood Tatsuya, uncertain whether he himself felt relief or sympathy for the boy. "You may be able to fool others, but with those eyes you'll never fool me." Tatsuya lifted his hands to feel his cheeks. They were already swollen enough as they were if that woman was to touch them now he would've instantly died from the pain.

Amidst the struggle, Ryuuya managed to shout, "I'm not in a henge Hokage-sama!" At that instant she let go, somewhat dumbfounded.

"If you're not him, then who are you?" Her hands were on her hips, chin tilted up and eyes casting down at him.

Gently rubbing his reddened and sore cheeks, he uttered, "I'm Ryuuya. Who did you mistake me for?"

The Hokage changed her position and starting tapping against her chin. "If you're not him…" she jerked her entire body around, eyes connecting with Tatsuya's, "then you must be him!" In a frenzy she lifted her hands, poised for the action of grabbing which Tatsuya nimbly ducked… and earned a smash with the fist on the head instead. "Brat!"

* * *

As a result of the commotion, Tatsuya was squatting on the ground, holding ice packs against Ryuuya's cheeks while the younger boy was blowing gently at the man's bruise in an attempt to soothe his pain. Looking on with amusement was the Hokage sitting back in her chair. 

"So Na-aa… Tatsuya-" the Hokage started.

"It's ok, he knows," Tatsuya interrupted, and stood up to his full height.

"Is that so?" She fixed a stare on the boy. "What kind of relationship do you have? Did you decide to adopt him as a brother or is he an assistant? Although, he does look awfully young to be one."

The dark headed man laughed in good humour. "No, our relationship is simply that of a father and son." He gazed down at the boy and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

Shocked, the woman leapt from her chair and slammed her hands onto the hard surface of the desk, causing a loud 'crack' to be heard. Papers on the top of the piles fluttered in the air while the rest slide off like an avalanche and into the middle as the desk snapped in half. The duo standing in front immediately took a step back. "Your son is this old and you never mentioned him in your letters?" She had daggers for eyes.

Now taking a few more steps back as precaution, Tatsuya laughed forcefully. "Well, you did tell me to be as brief as I could, Tsunade-baachan! You said it was for the best so as to keep my identity a secret. I remember you even reprimanded me after my first letter for revealing too much information!" For a moment she stood in recollection but that was already insignificant in her eyes. She was still absorbing all the information and a sign of that was her non-reactive state when he called her by his nickname for her. However, he would've been better off learning that a woman does not like to be reminded of her age.

"Well now that you're back. You can tell me all about it, right here and now!"

"No way, that would take ages!" he complained, arms folded and his eyes casting a determined glare. "Perhaps over a few dinners, that could work." Next to him, Ryuuya stared at him in wonder and curiosity. What grand adventures did his father have before his parents conceived him? Various thoughts flowed in his head, urging him to ask to listen to the story now.

"Deal!" Tsunade smiled softly and sunk back down onto her chair. "There are several matters which we must promptly deal with anyway." She seemed in thought for a while as if mentally checking a list. "For now you are to keep your identity as Kanazaki Tatsuya." Lowering her voice, she whispered, "Although I will miss calling you Naruto," and continued in regained volume, "You will be instated as a chuunin who has come from a fallen ninja village after having lived in the Cloud Country for a number of years. I doubt that the Anbu will find it perfectly agreeable for Konoha to have a ninja with your supposed origins in the Cloud Country but I'll manage that problem. The other issue at hand is possibility of your old friends recognising you; it'll only be a matter of time until they realise. Unless you have a plan to change the shades of those eyes and a better one to cover those whisker marks. Rather than the genjutsu…"

Tatsuya, the man the Hokage called Naruto, nodded. "I'm sure I could just wear contacts for my eyes but as for my cheeks… I'm not using genjutsu…" He glanced over to Ryuuya.

"Toto's not using genjutsu. He actually got stung by some ants when we were on the way to Konoha. I think it was yesterday when we were running here," Ryuuya explained. "You should see it when he gets stung by a bee!" In response, Naruto bopped the boy lightly on the head.

With a calculating look and a smirk on his face, Naruto said, "Just give me the number of the manufacturers who designed Kakashi-sensei's mask." Tsunade simply gave him a sceptical look. "Surely they wouldn't look too much into it if I told them I was a fan of the Copy Ninja." This time he received a raised eyebrow as a reply. "But I suppose if they do recognise me they'll just have to deal with you."

* * *

_Japanese terms_

Onigiri – rice balls

Tora – tiger

(Name)-san – an honorific used to address people politely

(Name)-sama – an honorific used to address people who are outrank you or highly respects

Henge – transformation

Tsunade-baachan – Granny Tsunade  
Genjutsu - are techniques that use the chakra in the victim's nervous system to create illusions. (Stolen from Wikipedia)

Toto – Dad/Papa

If anyone has better translations for these words, please do tell me. Also, I will be calling him Naruto from now on.

Have a Happy New Year!


	3. Childhood Memories

**Where Loyalties Lie**

By Chibi Tsuki

Summary: After leaving Konoha for ten years and working undercover with a new identity as a wanderer, Naruto is recalled back to Konoha by Tsunade, bringing his son for another new beginning as a Konoha shinobi. However, his identity is to be kept a secret and his real mission is unspoken of.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: A bit of change to the synopsis and I've decided to change the title (it seems more appropriate in a subtler sense) now that I can see the direction this story is heading in.

* * *

Chapter Three

_Childhood Memories_

It was shortly after two when Naruto and Ryuuya were standing facing at their newest and more permanent accommodation. They had spent the morning purchasing furniture to create a homier atmosphere to their one bedroom apartment. Standing close to the small balcony doors on the _tatami _mats was a _kotatsu_, a Japanese style low table with four cushions on each side. A drawer was placed by the door, a few trinkets and a framed photograph already decorated the previously empty surface. Another recent purchase – the cream coloured refrigerator stood proudly, pinned with medallions of magnets. On the wall just beside it was a small whiteboard. In the neat writing of a child was a roster of chores to be done with enough space for short messages. Bowls and cups filled the cupboards with brilliant colours of blue and green while pans were stored neatly in their drawer space. Similarly, their shared bedroom was just as simple. A built-in wardrobe stored their relatively few pieces of clothing and their _futon_, according to Ryuuya, that would only be laid out at night. Near the small wooden-floored area of the apartment entrance was a door to the bathroom. Everything was placed to their fancy in a short span of time.

"Not bad, right?" Naruto asked, grinning from ear to ear.

Ryuuya too had the same grin planted on his face, but then it faltered a bit when he said, "As long as you don't start getting lazy and not do your share of the work."

The older man shouted with a mock salute, "Yes sir!" Suddenly Ryuuya pounced at him like a fierce lion cub and the two came crashing down to the ground, rolling about in laughter. They lay on the floor panting slightly after their little tousle.

Through the glass door, Naruto saw the familiar scenery of the village – the place where he spent the first fifteen years of his life surrounded by. He too, once had his own apartment but however, would return every evening to find it silently empty. No mother to say "Welcome home," no father to pull him up into a tight hug and ruffle his hair. For company he simply had the mechanic humming of the refrigerator and the ticking of the clock. Naruto had often hated the thought of returning to the apartment. Without a family it wasn't much of a home either.

Warmth seeped into his senses and brought him back from his absentminded recollection of the past. Ryuuya had crawled half onto his lap and leaned against his broad chest. Naruto couldn't help but grin and settled his arms around his boy in a warm embrace. The child could often gauge people's emotions and understood what actions to take. Now was time for a bit of quiet comfort. The past nine years was a different story. Naruto no longer returned to the frigid silence of his shelter since he had his family in his heart. The best gift one could have.

'Knock, knock.' Leaping up from the floor, Naruto rushed to put on his discarded white-clothed facemask while Ryuuya made an act of rushing to the door by yelling, "Coming!" Slipping the uncomfortable apparel over his nose and mouth the older male was careful not to rub it against his most recent, although faded injury to his cheeks. Ready, Ryuuya started unlocking the few locks that chained the door in place and looked up at the visitor - thick dark eyebrows and a hearty, enthusiastic,

"Hello young man! I see that my new neighbour is in the springtime of his youth!" Shocked and with his mouth agape, Ryuuya could only stare at the man dressed in green before him. The stranger was wearing a jounin vest, body-clinging green spandex and had his hands wrapped up in layers of white bandages. What had startled the boy the most was his thick black hair cut into the shape of a helmet and the blinding white toothy grin as the man gave him a thumbs-up. Naruto stood behind Ryuuya, questioning eyes staring in slight surprise. His immediate thought was, _Is this Rock Lee or Maito Gai?_ "My name is Rock Lee and I welcome your stay here."

Straightening up, Naruto gave the familiar man a similar brilliant grin behind his mask and brought his hand out. "My name is Kanazaki Tatsuya and this is Ryuuya." The man named Rock Lee shook his hand as they gave each other a direct, solid stare. Observing their intense stares, Ryuuya felt as if the two men were gauging each other. After measuring the other, both men relaxed and started talking casually. Their conversation was more of a welcoming than a questioning of the duo's background. Not even once did Lee mention a why or how but rather insisted that they went to his abode and enjoyed a welcome dinner.

When Lee had left, Naruto closed the door and sighed. As much as he tried to open himself up in that interaction with Lee, he still couldn't ease away the guilt of holding back his real identity. Perhaps his old friend, like many other shinobi, was used to the idea of a ninja wearing a facemask like Hatake Kakashi, his former _sensei_. Nonetheless, Naruto still felt as if he had hidden away a part of himself. Returning to Konoha had stirred up many unwanted thoughts, not that he could do much to solve the problems. "Let's go out and take a proper look around Konoha," Naruto suggested. Ryuuya nodded enthusiastically and plonked down on the ground to secure his sandals to his feet.

* * *

As they walked down the streets towards the lake, Naruto pointed out the grandeur of the reliefs of their previous and current Hokage. Skilled artisans over many generations had been carefully selected for the carving of the faces. Murmuring into Ryuuya's ear, he recalled a moment where he had caused a mockery, waking up early to 'artistically paint' additional features to the serious faces, only to be caught and made to scrub it all off. The boy exploded into fits of laughter and stared at his father with incredibility. Of all things his dad had to graffiti on, it had to be those monuments. They walked by the shimmering blue lake, the colours as brilliant as the father and son's telltale sapphire-blue eyes. Ducks swam into the watery mass, their heads bobbing gently as they waded across the surface. Sitting down on a patch of soft green grass, Naruto asked, "Remember how I mentioned about a ninja academy?" Ryuuya nodded in anticipation. "If you'd like to be a shinobi, I could enrol you into the academy."

"That means I'll officially become a ninja," the boy said eagerly. Throughout his young life, the boy had never expected to be given the opportunity of serving a country as a shinobi. The village where he was born was situated in the remote area of the mountains – a place where there rarely were outside visitors. His father's work, which he didn't understand back then, had kept Naruto away from the village in long periods of time. But being luckier than most of the village children, his father would take him and his mother away for a week to one of the closest trading villages twice a year. For him, that was a thrilling experience. After being swept into the tide of events, they had left the village and he had learned to quickly adapt to the dangers of the foreign world that he had been shielded from in order to survive. Forcefully, he was dropped into the raging torrents and all he could do was to hold tightly onto his father's strong hand. Circumstances gave him a chance to understand the secrets his parents had tucked away for his safety, although it seemed more like a bitter reality. But now, he could become a proper ninja, not some wishy washy wannabe warrior who had learnt a few skills here and there. He would become the best shinobi to protect what he loved the most. "When do I start?"

Naruto chuckled. "If you're that keen, I can try to arrange it with the Hokage so that you can start soon. The new school year for the students should have started a month ago, but if we do some private training," with that, he winked "I'm sure we'll be able to catch up fairly soon. You'll go to school and play with kids your age again but then you'll forget about dear old Toto."

"Never!" Ryuuya refuted, casting him a confident stare. "If I forget about you, you'll make our home into a pigsty again!" In a softer note he added, "Besides, you're my Toto. No one replaces Toto." Resisting the urge to pull him into a hug, Naruto simply ruffled his hair fondly. "I remember you and the Hokage talking yesterday. She said that you'll be placed into a team, didn't she?"

"Yeah," his voice came out in a sigh. "I may have to go on missions again for periods of time. It'll be hard on you." The waves of loneliness seeped into his emotions again. He didn't want Ryuuya to feel the same way he had.

"I will be waiting for you to come back everyday you're gone, and when you do get back you'll see how much I've improved!" The child was so encouraging, he could only smile.

* * *

Four days had come and gone since they had first arrived at Konoha. They had talked to Tsunade about enrolling Ryuuya into the Ninja Academy. It turned out that the kids attending their first year were a year older than Ryuuya which meant that there was still an age gap. She had suggested that he attended normal school, waited another eleven months before starting at the Ninja Academy. However, the boy was persistent in attending ninja lessons rather than learning substraction skills all over again. With much effort and convincing Ryuuya managed to secure himself a position as the newest addition to the academy.

That morning, Naruto accompanied his son to the academy. Throughout the trip Ryuuya was energetically bounding down the street in front of him and doubling back to urge him to walk faster. Other children around his age were giving them curious glances as they made their way to school. Parents who had insisted on taking their children were at first cautious when they saw the suspiciously half-masked man but when they noticed the interaction between the father and son, the tension disappeared. Arriving at the academy, Naruto brought them immediately to the staffroom, his feet automatically tracing the path he had often taken as a child, especially when he was in trouble.

* * *

Academy teacher, Umino Iruka, was a tall, dark-haired man. He had an identifiable scar that ran horizontally across his face and wore a forehead protector with the Konoha symbol etched onto it at its proper place while his hair was pulled back and tied up, away from his face. Dressed in the usual gear of black shirts and pants and the tactical vest, Iruka was reading the letter he had received from the Hokage earlier that morning. It clearly stated that a boy by the name of Kanazaki Ryuuya, seven years old, would be entering the Ninja Academy. The boy would be placed into his first year class. _Kanazaki Ryuuya_, he thought, _isn't Kanazaki the surname of the two brothers who have come to stay in the village?_ He frowned as he stared harder, if it were possible, at the name written on paper. _Isn't it suspicious that the two figures have decided to come to Konoha Village amidst the confusion of the episodes concerning the missing-nin?_ Either way he had no choice but to see these characters for himself. He would question them a bit and stickybeak into their backgrounds before judging for himself.

On good timing, there was a knock at the door. Iruka turned around from his desk and pulled the door open. In front of him stood a duo he hadn't quite pictured them to be. They were dressed in garments quite the opposite of each other – one suspicious in a masked disguise and the other in plain civilian clothing. The boy he guessed was Ryuuya was dressed in a white collared T-shirt and dark blue shorts. He was beaming under his long black bangs and his eyes mirrored his happiness. Likewise, his companion's aqua-green eyes were emitting rays of cheerfulness and his facemask stretched with his smile. Somewhat the opposite of an acquaintance he knew who either never smiled or just giggled like a lecher behind that horrendous orange book. The man wore a mixture of dark and light colours – he wore a thick, sleeveless, beige-coloured top over a dark blue long-sleeved shirt. Jet black gloves wrapped around his hands, the colour matching the donned jet black three-quarter pants. Iruka could only know who this man was trying to imitate.

"You're our newest student, Kanazaki Ryuuya, aren't you?" he directed the question to the boy who nodded before replying yes. "You don't look seven with your height. Would you two like to come and sit down first? I'd just like to ask you a few questions for our database." They followed him to the gestured chairs that were positioned to face one chair, obviously for the teacher. He offered them a smile and introduced himself. "My name is Umino Iruka and I'll be teaching Ryuuya." Turning to look at the surprisingly attentive man he continued, "I understand that you've recently arrived in Konoha Village, but what sort profession are you in Kanazaki-san or what type of occupation will you be seeking?"

In an honest voice, the man said, "I've been instated by the Hokage as a Chuunin and have been assigned to a team." Iruka looked at him, scepticism written on his face. Seeing the reaction he continued, "I was actually a ninja in a small village in the Cloud Country until we were involved in the war many years back. Our village was burnt to the ground and only a few survived."

At this point, Naruto inwardly felt remorse for having to lie to this man whom he had looked up as a big brother. However, he tried to alleviate the guilt by telling himself that not all of it was a lie. "It was quite a few years after living at a farming village that I heard about Konoha Village and came in hopes of finding work as a shinobi again."

"I understand." The teacher could sympathise with a man who had lost his cause and was trying to seek it again, especially for a warrior. Without a country or even a village, a ninja cannot perform his duties to serve. Yet there are those who have stepped into misguided path of a missing-nin. Besides, this man was still young which prompted him to ask, "What is your relationship with Ryuuya?"

Chuckling, Naruto replied, "People have been asking me that lately."

"It is for record purposes."

Although knowing that it wasn't his position to speak, Ryuuya was itching to get this interview over with so that he could meet his new classmates. "He's my father."

"Oh." Once again the information had surprised him. Once again, Uzumaki Naruto had caused others to be confused about his age because of his carefree grin. Iruka couldn't help but wonder how old the man in front of him was when he and his partner first had intercourse. Sex education was definitely lacking in remote villages, or perhaps they followed the traditional ways and all married young. He, Umino Iruka, aged thirty-five was still in the stage of proposing to his girlfriend and here was a man much younger than him, with a son. "I believe that was the last question. But before I take Ryuuya to his new class, are there any questions you'd like me to answer?"

Primarily wanting to hear the familiar voice of his former teacher, Naruto asked a number of questions regarding Ryuuya's education. To Ryuuya's frustration, the conversation was in his perspective, too long. But luckily, since the school bell had rung, his father was to leave, allowing Ryuuya to finally start his first day at school.

* * *

Judging by the position of the sun, Naruto guessed that it was around ten. He was to meet his new team members fairly soon at tallest oak tree at one of the smaller parks. Normally, he would've taken the most direct route to his destination as he knew the path, however, he could sense eyes following his every movement. Doubtlessly, it was an Anbu who was keeping his or her guard up to make sure the newcomer didn't have any ulterior motives. It was good that they were taking their jobs so seriously but for Naruto, this meant doing a little performance. Walking down the cobbled footpath in the wrong direction, he decided to ask the first person he saw for directions. "Excuse me sir," he said to back of a dark headed man who was leaning against a tree. "Excuse me?" he said again when there was no reply.

"What do you want?" asked the man in an irritated voice who slowly turned around to look up at him, for he was hunched over and slightly shorter in height. Suddenly, in mixed emotions, Naruto was speechless. The man's dark eyes bore into his – those eyes that would change in a deep shocking red and at its centre, a pinwheel-shaped seal. This man was Uchiha Sasuke, the man who had betrayed him for greater power, the man who had been his love rival, the man who had the attention Naruto had hoped for and the man whom he called his brother. Even though he managed to knock some sense into the Uchiha over ten years ago Naruto never expected to see that face full of expression, albeit a scowl. When he had met Sasuke again two years after he had defected, it was almost as if meeting a stranger.

Instead, he kept his face stoic like he had on his secret missions to avoid suspecting glances and suppressed the leaping excitement he felt. Nonchalantly he asked for directions and as he walked away, he heard the grumble, "What an idiot." That was another sign of Sasuke being Sasuke.

* * *

I'm thinking of putting a few het pairings in but I have no personal preferences so if anyone would like to input some suggestions. You can pull Naruto into the pairings if you'd like. Otherwise I'll just stick to the supposed canon pairings. Except I do stress that the main focus is not romance between characters. Also, there may only be hints of your chosen pairings - Naruto/? inclusive.

I know it's a bit slow paced at the moment but I didn't want to rush into the plot but from now the plot should start flowing. So expect more action in the next chapter!

Lastly, I'm not sure whether you prefer me writing with the usual Japanese vocab, eg. Genin, shinobi, Name-san, etc. or just leaving that out altogether and using translated terms for them.

Thanks for reading and reviewing! Greatly appreciated XD


	4. Sniffed Out

**Where Loyalties Lie**

By Chibi Tsuki

Summary: After leaving Konoha for ten years and working undercover with a new identity as a wanderer, Naruto is recalled back to Konoha by Tsunade, bringing his son for another new beginning as a Konoha shinobi. However, his identity is to be kept a secret and his real mission is unspoken of.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Compared to the previous chapters, I've been slow to update this one because I've been getting busier. University is starting soon and so chances of me updating consistently will be quite dim, but I'll try my best.

Thanks for the reviews – they do give that extra boost to my determination to write another chapter.

For my _unknown _reader, I am planning to keep the romance to a minimal. There may be hints but I'm not going to let it get in the way of my plot.

_Erica_, I personally don't write stories that focus on homosexual pairings. I have nothing against it, but the interest isn't quite there.

_Scrabble and Dice_, I felt like giving him a 'cool' exterior like the manga, but there may be more to him than what you see on the surface.

* * *

Chapter Four

_Sniffed Out_

Arriving without the help of a certain dark-headed man, Naruto still had a few minutes to spare. A single figure lay under the oak tree was reaching high up to touch the clouds with its wispy branches. The strangely masked man strolled over and stopped a few metres away. "Clouds do look better when they're at a greater distance," he uttered in a decisive tone and heard an annoyed grunt directed back at him. "Sorry, did I disturb you?"

The man who was resting under the tree twisted his body around, glanced at Naruto before mumbling something that sounded like, "How troublesome." He patted away the grassy addition to his tactical vest and dark pants, missing the soft chuckle at his murmur. "According to the Hokage, you're Kanazaki Tatsuya, a chuunin from the Cloud Country in your mid-twenties and you have a brother called Ryuuya." Naruto didn't bother correcting the mistake. "My name is Nara Shikamaru, I'm a jounin and the squad captain."

Just as Naruto was about to say the pleasantries he heard the faint footsteps behind him, even though the two individuals and single canine were unmistakably trained in the stealth arts, and turned to face them. The recognisable red, fang-like markings on the cheeks of one, the soft, mid-length, cherry blossom coloured hair on the second and lastly the white furry coat trotting alongside – Inuzuka Kiba, Haruno Sakura and Akamaru. Resisting the urge to greet them with the same old enthusiasm Naruto watched as they approached. The large canine sniffed the air and stopped a few paces away, eyeing intently at him. He had expected as much – someone or something would realise sooner or later.

"What is it Akamaru?" Kiba, the dog's partner asked. The question captured the attention of the entire group, however none noticed the shift of emotion in Naruto's eyes. Akamaru barked and moved closer to the group. Kiba contemplated for a while before muttering, "Alright."

"Is there anything wrong Kiba?" the smiling pink-haired woman asked and the man beside him shook his head. Naruto imprinted her face into his mind and compared it to before, when she was still a clinging Sasuke fan girl, and later to the time when she has Tsunade's apprentice. Many things sure had changed since then. She was his first crush back when they were still genin, although her assistance was unpredictable at critical times. Years later when he saw her again, Sakura started to blossom into young woman, proving to be reliable comrade and trustworthy friend. Now she undoubtedly had become more mature and, with a little pride Naruto thought, '_more beautiful_'. However, his years of maturation had dimmed that romantic affection towards her.

"…introduce to you the squad," the spiky-haired squad leader said, "Haruno Sakura, Konoha's top medic-nin, Inuzuka Kiba, a tracker jounin and his companion, Akamaru." Feeling the scrutiny of Kiba's eyes on him, Naruto returned the stare and gave him a smirk before turning away. "This is Kanazaki Tatsuya, the newcomer to Konoha who is of chuunin rank. He will be temporarily replacing Sai for the next few months."

In the mood of a little unnoticeable cheek Naruto casually said, "Is there an explanation as to why I've been placed in a jounin rank team? Surely a man with an unknown background like mine would not be placed in a team where I can easily sabotage high ranked missions. Not to mention my rank as a chuunin."

It was obvious that Shikamaru had been questioning the decision. A brilliant strategist such as he would be suspicious. Even the other two would notice the wrongness of this placing. "The Hokage has her reasons." The statement was more of a dismissal of the subject that no one except Naruto could answer. "Just before we end this meeting, Tatsuya, what are your strengths and weaknesses?"

He had pondered over this question before in the morning. An answer close to the truth without revealing it was necessary. "My primary skills are kenjutsu," '_not exactly_' he thought, "and taijutsu. My weakest skill is genjutsu," purposely leaving his ability of ninjutsu out.

"We will be receiving our next mission shortly and so there'll be another meeting here tomorrow at noon," Shikamaru said in his professional business related voice. During his adolescent years leading teams into missions, there often were seniors who didn't take him seriously or felt jealousy towards him and so he had trained himself to speak in an authoritative way. He reverted back to his nonchalant way of speaking and left the group, saying that he had to meet the Hokage. Left behind were Naruto, Kiba, Sakura and Akamaru.

"Hey Tatsuya," Kiba said with an enthusiastic grin, "since you're new here I'll show you around town. Sakura, you're probably busy right? Then we'll be off." He casually nudged Naruto in the direction of the town without looking back at the dumbfounded woman.

"What does this mean Kiba? You're going off without even inviting me?" she demanded, straightening her posture and tilting her chin slightly to show her displeasure.

Kiba turned around and waved his hands up in a defeated gesture, seemingly wanting to get away from her faster. "I'm sorry. I just thought that you know, since you're going out with Uchiha that you'd be spending the day with him." Instantly Sakura's face flushed and she turned away shyly with a goofy grin.

"Gees Kiba," she said in a school girl-like fashion. "Well you two have fun. I'll see you tomorrow." With that said, she turned around and dashed off, losing her commanding characteristics.

The spiky-haired brown headed man shrugged his shoulders and uttered, "It's been more than a year since she started going out with Uchiha and she's still like that." His eyes darted to his left and inquired, "Of course, you're not disappointed are you?"

With a small chuckle, Naruto asked, "Disappointed? About what?"

"Admit it, you liked Sakura back then Nar-" the chuunin muffled the rest of his words with a hand over Kiba's mouth.

"Tatsuya, my dear friend. Tatsuya."

Resigned, Kiba said after Naruto removed his hand, "Alright Tatsuya. I don't know why you're being all secret but boy am I glad you're back! Where have you been all these years?" Beside him Akamaru barked happily, his long white tail waving excitedly back and fro.

"How about we find someplace quieter to discuss?" Naruto whispered with a sigh. With Kiba blurting out all these questions, Naruto would be as good as begging people to find out his identity.

By the time they had bought take-out, walked to Kiba's house and finished lunch, it was close to two o' clock. This meant that there was only one hour to entertain Kiba with a few vague answers before picking Ryuuya up from the academy. Lounged on the sofa, Naruto casually answered Kiba's questions, being as brief and indirect as he could. Although he mostly branched off onto other pointless stories such as the one time he was drunk and accidentally puked on a ravishing young woman when he was still green. His friend didn't seem to mind the anecdotes and eventually the details of why he left and where he had gone weren't important anymore. 

As it was time to leave, Naruto accepted Kiba's invitation to the local bar before heading off. Stepping onto the street he couldn't help but grin widely. He was once again with his friends, well at least one friend, whom he didn't have to hide himself from. There were still some unavoidable secrets given his situation but all in due time.

* * *

Haruno Sakura waited outside the Ninja Academy for her younger sister who had just finished school. Younger than Sakura by fourteen years, Haruno Akemi who idolised her well accomplished sister, aspired to become a ninja. Although there was a significant age gap between the two, they were close siblings and often confided each other with their secrets. Naturally for a child Akemi's age, she would go home by herself but for the sisters it was their time together.

"Nee-san!" a bubbly pink-headed girl shouted as she ran over to Sakura. Her face was plastered with a giant grin. "Today, there was a new boy at school!"

"Oh…" Sakura smiled slyly with a knowing look, only to receive a pout and an angry glare.

However, the younger girl's excitement couldn't be held in any longer and she continued her chatter. "His name is Kanazaki Ryuuya-" Sakura wondered why that name was so familiar, "and he is so cute!"

"Is he in your class?" she asked nonchalantly.

Akemi shook her head and replied enthusiastically, "He's just starting the academy this year."

"He's younger than you." She hadn't realised that her little sister were into younger men. The younger generation was changing so rapidly that it would soon be a kick to conformity.

"Only by three," Akemi started counting habitually with her fingers, "four, five. That's not the point. At first he looked so timid and shy but then-" She sighed and Sakura couldn't help but mentally freak out. First there was an age difference and then female empowerment? "I can't describe it, but I'll point him out to you when he comes out." They waited for a minute or so for the last class to come filing out. The smaller children were eager to go home and soon spread out, causing disarray to the neat grouping as they ran off to their parents.

In the middle of the crowd was a dark-headed individual whom Akemi identified with a fervent passion. Sakura sighed. Once she gave it a spare thought, she used to be like that and perhaps still was with Sasuke. The most distinctive feature the boy had was his striking sapphire-coloured eyes. That is until he turned their way and his entire face lit up with an enthusiastic smile. He ran towards and past them. Unable to stop herself, she turned around and watched as the boy laughed and greeted a much taller figure with the words "Toto." Scooped up into the air and onto a shoulder he continued his excited childlike giggle. Words flowed out of his mouth as he described his day.

The face or for the better description, the masked face next to the boy's caught her attention. She had seen that face merely hours ago as it belonged to her new team member, Tatsuya. The man caught her stare and gave her a carefree wave alongside the same exuberant smile the blue-eyed child had. Slowly he walked over to them after putting the boy back on the ground. "Hello Sakura," he said in his deep voice, "fancy seeing you here."

Akemi tugged at Sakura's sleeve whispering something behind her hand that meant 'you know this man who knows Ryuuya whom I think is cute'. Her soft mutter was unheard. Rather, Sakura felt an insane tugging within her that silently screamed at her. Even so, she couldn't tie the two wriggling ends of information together so she simply greeted him with a "Hi" in return.

"Who is this pretty young lady?" he asked in a good-natured yet somehow, according to the females, charming voice.

"She's my sister, Akemi." The younger pink haired girl's gaze was directed to the ground, sporting a crimson blush that matched her hair. Eventually she glanced up at the man's friendly features and greeted him softly. "Akemi's in her last year at the academy," Sakura explained to break the beginning of an awkward conversation.

"Nice to meet you Akemi. My name is Kanazaki Tatsuya and this is my son, Ryuuya. Please take care of him from now on."

Suddenly both sisters stared at him, eyes widening and jaws dropping. In unison they shouted, "You're father and son?" and earned a few incredulous stares. The pair in front of them nodded. It was Sakura who continued to ask, "How old are you? You definitely don't look… well that old!"

"I turned twenty-six a month ago," he replied in all honesty. Unlike the opposite gender, men didn't need to hide their age.

"Seriously? You're younger than nee-san!" Akemi blurted out, earning a reprimand from her sister and more curious stares that were searching for more juicy gossip.

"Only by a few months, excuse me," the older sister said with a huff. Conscious of the attention, Sakura muttered, "We have to go now."

"I guess we kept you here," Tatsuya uttered. "We'll be off too, so see you later." After exchanging farewells, the two sisters headed off to town. With her thoughts off track, Sakura's nagging feeling lay dormant at the very back of her mind.

* * *

Naruto and Ryuuya returned to their apartment building, hands full of grocery shopping. Most of the lights were on, illuminating the quickly darkening sky. The duo walked down the cobbled pathway pass the hardly visible flowers in their clumps of green and to the beckoning light behind the wooden doors. As they walked up the stairs and down the corridor towards their room, a figure waved to them, "Good evening youths of Konoha!" It really wasn't that hard to distinguish the person as their neighbour Rock Lee. "How about joining me for dinner tonight?" With little time for second thoughts they were ushered over to his room.

_Sukiyaki_, Japanese style hot pot was set in the middle of the wooden dining room table. Bowls and chopsticks were arranged according to the seating positions and all that was waiting was for them to sit down and start. Naruto was in a pinch. They certainly couldn't refuse dinner, especially since everything had been arranged and it would be outright insulting. However, he couldn't eat with his mask still on. This situation needed some quick thinking and a decade of survival missions had assisted him in unaccountable ways. Everyday situations and one-man battles he could handle, but military strategies and _shogi_ games were definitely _not _his forte. "This is great Lee! But I'd put our groceries back in our fridge first before the milk goes off," he explained and strode out.

As he placed the last of the items away and tidied up the plastic bags he opened a cupboard and grabbed a particular object. With a basic transformation technique he made his whisper marks disappear and added some dark coloured hair growth to his chin and along his jaw. After all those years he had lost the baby fat and with his dyed hair, green contacts and darker tan it was hardly likely Lee would recognise him. Naruto could hold onto the transformation for longer than necessary but sometimes when feeling relaxed and not focussing, it was possible for him to slip out of the transformation. To ensure that his plan was foolproof, Naruto simply needed that extra something.

By the time he had returned next door, Ryuuya and Lee were already seated down and chatting. They were talking about some awfully familiar topics. "What are you two talking about?" Naruto inquired as he placed his trusty bottle of _sake_ on the table. "By the way, do you have anything I can use to heat this up?"

Lee left his seat and took charge of the task, urging his friend to sit down. "We were just talking about my old friend, Uzumaki Naruto," he answered enthusiastically, "since Ryuuya said that he'd heard of the name from his teacher."

"Wow. What sort of stories do you have to tell?" Even though Naruto thought it would've been better for them not to bring up his name he understood that his son simply wanted to know more about him.

"I was telling him about the time when we were fighting in the chuunin exams. Kiba sure did underestimate him-" He was interrupted by Ryuuya contagious laughter and soon the pair was bursting out in hysterics. Naruto remembered that scene well and truly as if it was simply the day before. The face mask hid his smirk as he replayed it in his head. Some things like farting in your opponent's face in a serious battle, especially when you're no longer a brat, are better not done twice. People don't look so kindly when you're older. "It's ready," Lee announced and brought the sake over to the table with two cups in his hand. When he noticed that no one had started eating yet he urged them to start.

Heartily, Ryuuya filled his bowl with thinly sliced meat, mushroom, an egg and the assortment of food found in the _sukiyaki_. In the time frame that Lee expressed that he was amused by Ryuuya's appetite and starting ranting about youth, Naruto readily poured the rice wine. It was a fairly concentrated bottle and knowing Lee's tolerance it shouldn't take too much to make him just a tad tipsy. "Here Lee," he offered one of the two cups to his neighbour and poured a cup of water for his son. When they were all ready he suggested, "Let's toast to our friendship." The three brought their cups together with a soft 'clink'. Naruto pulled down his mask and drank a mouthful of the warm _sake_. He lolled it in his mouth before swallowing it down.

"This is good _sake_," Lee commented before proceeding to start helping himself with some food.

"There's still more." Happily, Naruto filled up Lee's cup again. It wasn't the second time, but third time Naruto refilled his friend's cup that he could see the effects of the alcohol. Now if Naruto accidentally let the transformation slip, it wouldn't be that much of a problem.

* * *

I've included links for those who want to look into the terms more.

Japanese terms

Kenjutsu – Sword techniques

Taijutsu – Hand-to-hand combat.

Genjutsu – Illusion techniques.

Ninjutsu – Techniques that use chakra to perform a ninja skill.

For more info on the above four terms, http://en. – older sister

Shogi – Japanese chess. For more info http://en. – Japanese rice wine

Thanks again for reading and do review so that I know if you like it or it could do with some improvement!


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